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Note about my Reviews

Dear Authors: The reviews in this blog are only personal opinions. I have absolutely no background in literature, writing or reviewing. I am a Librarian (actually a Library Technician for those who care OR know the difference) with a love for a good story. The opinions in the reviews are ONLY my OPINIONS. I am not commenting on the writers ability since well -- I am not a writer and never will be. If you are the author of any of the books reviewed here, my opinion is just that and not a judgment against you!

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Apparition by Gail Gallant

Description: The last time
seventeen-year-old Amelia Mackenzie saw her best friend Matthew alive,
he broke her heart. When he is found the next day in an abandoned barn
at the edge of town, an apparent suicide, Amelia's whole world comes
crashing down.

And then she sees him again. Because Amelia has a secret that even Matthew didn't know: sometimes, she sees ghosts.

When
a local history columnist named Morris Dyson contacts Amelia after the
funeral and tells her that he thinks the barn Matthew died in is
haunted, and that Matthew wasn't its first victim, an unlikely
partnership is born. With Amelia's gift for seeing ghosts, Morris's
radical theories on the supernatural, and a bit of help from Morris's
sexy but skeptical son, Kip, a mystery unfolds. One by one, the barn's
other ghostly residents are revealed: all innocent, love-struck young
men who've died horrific deaths, seemingly by their own hands.

Life
and death couldn't get more complicated as Amelia is torn between her
devotion to the ghostly Matthew and her growing attraction to Kip, who
may not believe in ghosts but can't help believing in Amelia. When she's
confronted with a rivalry between the living and the dead, which side
of the great divide will Amelia choose?

The Good Stuff

Interesting and unique premise for a ghost story

At times spooky and keeps you on the edge of your seat (unfortunately, for me, this didn't last)

Story was good enough to keep me reading to the end, even with some of the issues that left me frustrated (see the not so good stuff section)

Love, love, love the Canadian setting - especially as it is set somewhere I have been on many occasion

Nice uses of humour

This is more suited to a YA reader and I really feel that I am doing it a disservice at reviewing it as I am not the intended audience. Going to pass this on at work to some of the teen employees as I think they will enjoy it more

Just noticed that Gail Gallant is a television writer - Miss Gallant I think this would be a a fascinating tv production

Mentions Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Tim Horton's - two of my favorite things

Would be a good book for a reluctant reader

Enjoyed the scenes between Kip and Amelia

The Not So Good Stuff

I wanted so much to like this, as well, I am a sucker for a ghost story, but just felt that it was all over the place and Amelia was a hard character for me personally to become interested in.

I think this one would be better suited for the younger YA reader, as I think I am just to old for this angsty stuff.

Just couldn't feel any connection with Amelia. One minute she was head over heels in love with Matthew and than seems to get over him really quickly. Just didn't ring true

Jumpy - to me this felt more like a script than a novel

Favorite Quotes/Passages

"The apple orchards look best in fall. All bare, twisted and tortured. Makes you wonder if Tim Burton grew up in Grey County."

"Zombies, they're cool, Jesus was a zombie, for Christ's sake. That's what Easter's all about."

3 Dewey's

I received this from Random House in exchange for an honest review. Sorry guys, I really wanted to like it more

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About Me

Married Mom of 2 wonderful but unruly boys. A Library Technician but currently working for Westjet Vacations. I am a book nerd and geeky tv loving optimist with a dry twisted sense of humour and a big heart.